8 Islamic parties in Bangladesh demonstrated in Dhaka on Tuesday. He has demanded from the interim government led by Mohammad Yunus that the National Charter be given legal recognition. He says that without this charter no general elections are possible. Thousands of supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami and seven other political parties participated in the demonstration. General elections may be held in Bangladesh in February 2026.

The main demand of the protesters is that a referendum be held on the National Charter in July. This charter was proposed after the movement in July 2024. At present this charter is not binding. The parties say that a referendum is necessary to make it binding in law and part of the Constitution. Bangladesh has a parliamentary democracy and only the Parliament can make changes in the Constitution.

What reforms are proposed in the Charter?

The interim government prepared a roadmap for political reforms under the charter. This government is headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus. The charter includes measures to bring balance to the country’s political system, such as giving more powers to the President so that the power of the Prime Minister is balanced. Apart from this, the charter also includes measures to limit the tenure of MLAs, prevent conflict of interest, money laundering and corruption.

On October 17, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) signed the charter. Besides, 24 other parties also supported. There are a total of 52 registered parties in Bangladesh. Hasina’s Awami League has been banned by the interim government. The protesters said there would be no elections until a referendum was held and the charter became binding. Radical Islamic parties also demand that elections should be held under proportional representation (PR).

What is the current electoral system?

Currently in Bangladesh, the candidate who gets the most votes wins. There are 300 general seats and 50 reserved seats for women in Parliament. Under the Proportional Representation (PR) election system, people will not vote for any individual but for the party. The percentage of votes a party gets, the number of seats it will get.

For example, if a party gets 30% votes then it will get 30% seats. There will not be 300 separate constituencies. The whole of Bangladesh will be considered as one constituency. Elections will be held between parties, not between individuals. Small parties will also get a chance to be represented in Parliament. However, a big party like BNP is opposing it and wants to maintain the existing system.